How to Deal with Life's Disappointments

I have come to realise that life is filled with unexpected blessings and often times the things that give us the most stress and the most pain are the things that are meant to shape and propel us towards our goals and our destiny. The reality is that progress never comes in comfort and whenever we are faced with constant struggles and strife in our lives we must learn to humble ourselves and realise that this is because something in your life is about to shift. In order for positive change to occur pressure must precede it, this is in order for you to get into the appropriate position so you can receive your blessing when it is ready. I have come to realise that in life disappointments are inevitable and there is no way of avoiding them. Frankly, sometimes we make plans and they materialise while other times they may never be realised. However, this is no reason to panic or to become frantic as it simply means that life has something bigger and better planned for you. For many years i did not understand why i had to struggle in my life so much, why i had to experience the things i experienced in my childhood but as i grew older and became wise enough to reflect upon certain things. I realised that had i not gone through the struggles of my past i would not be able to be the individual of the magnitude that i am today and that i would not have the strength to bare the burden of my present struggles. I grew up without much privilege and there were many things i wanted growing up that i knew i could not have; simple because i did not have the economic resources to access it. My mother,who did her best to shield me from depravity, would never hesitate to reprimand me whenever i started to question my lack of privilege or complain about the things we did not have. She did this as she did not want me to develop a spirit of entitlement, she wanted me to be content with the little we had and not dwell too much on the lot that we did not possess. These were the values instilled in me from an early age and for a time i was content; all we had was each other, we were our support and we knew how to take the little we had and make it last to sustain our growing family. My mother worked hard to ensure that even though we did not have all we wanted we were never short of the necessities; her number one goal was to ensure that food was always on the table and that we never missed a day in school. I can tell you there were some nights when the little we had was not enough and we had to go to bed hungry as a sacrifice so that we could have the monies to go to school the next day. At a very early age i had the revelation that whatever things i desired in this life i would have to work had for it and that nothing would ever be just handed to me. Consequently, I have dedicated my energies to working towards my goals as amidst all the disadvantage and the struggle i could see better days ahead. Unequivocally, i have come to realise that we are in charge of our destinies and that where we come from does not define where we are going. I have come to the realisation that people will always try to judge you and define you by your past but you should never allow yourself to be limited by the things you have experienced in your past. Everything that we encounter in this life is all part of our growth process, it is all there to mold and shape us into better individuals. It is through our struggles and the disappointments that often follow that we are able to gain valuable life tools such as humility, kindness, hope, gratitude, perseverance and hospitality. So i want to encourage you the next time you feel disappointed or discouraged because something in your life did not go as planned just be reminded that there is a lesson to be learnt from the experience. Additionally, that there is some good to be salvaged from it, the trick to succeeding in this life is to never give up and to always keep on trying. Rome was not built overnight and you certainly will not realise your greatness and potential in one day.